10 things to know about Trump's key advisor Steve Bannon

Alexa Renee, KXTV12:05 PM. EDT April 06, 2017

US President Donald Trump's Senior Counselor Steve Bannon waits for the start of Trump's meeting with business leaders in the Roosevelt Room at the White House in Washington, DC, on January 23, 2017. (Photo: NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images, This content is subject to copyright.)

Donald Trump removed Bannon, who is his chief strategist, from the National Security Council Tuesday but the White House kept quiet. The news came into light Wednesday after the order was filed with the Office of the Federal Register.

But just who is Stephen K. Bannon?

Here are 10 things to know about him:

1. Bannon is the former chief executive chairman of Breitbart News, a website that gives voice to ultra-conservative and nationalistic ideals. The site is known to be combative, pushing an "alt-right", anti-establishment agenda. Bannon ran Breitbart out of the basement of his townhouse on Capitol Hill just blocks behind the Supreme Court. The site was known for lavish parties and a staff of young reporters.

2. He comes from a Democrat family. Bannon was born in 1953 in Norfolk, Virginia, and and grew up in nearby Richmond with a Democratic family. “I come from a blue-collar, Irish Catholic, pro-Kennedy, pro-union family of Democrats,” Bannon told Bloomberg Politics.

3. Bannon served as Trump's campaign CEO. Breitbart was made a lot of noise during Trump's presidential campaign, embracing the president-elect. The site's influence on social media during the campaign competed with mainstream media. On election night, the Breitbart Facebook page received the fourth-highest number of user interactions on the entire platform, beating Fox News, CNN and The New York Times. After a successful campaign, Trump brought Bannon into the White House to serve as his chief strategist.

4. Bannon served in the U.S. Navy. Although Bannon has no White House prior to his current position as the president's key advisor, he served four years in the Navy as an officer.

7. He also worked in Hollywood. While running his investment bank, Bannon invested in Hollywood films and even scored a deal for a small equity stake in the hit sitcom Seinfeld. He later directed political documentaries such as "The Undefeated", a 2011 documentary about failed vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin and "In the Face of Evil", praising the Reagan administration.

8. Bannon was charged with domestic abuse in 1996. A Santa Monica police report says Bannon's ex-wife, who he has twin daughters with, claimed Bannon pulled at her neck and wrists during a domestic fight. He was charged with misdemeanor domestic violence, battery and dissuading a witness following the incident. The charges were dropped and the couple divorced shortly after ending Bannon's second marriage.

9. He's been married and divorced three times. Bannon married his first wife prior to finishing school and they had one daughter. He and his second wife, who accused him of domestic abuse, had twin daughters. He has no kids with his third wife.

10. Bannon is the founder of a nonprofit that investigates politicians. Bannon started the Government Accountability Institute (GAI) a nonprofit that investigates politicians and delivers the information to mainstream media.